Don’t Lose Sight of Your Goals, Inspiration and Accountability

Woke up today with a renewed sense of excitement to achieving my dreams and I want to pass this feeling onto you.

A month ago I was in a much different head-space.

Finishing a 6 month job contract headed back on the road with no clear direction or where my next paycheck would come from.

Wondering if or when I would find a job in Australia as good as I had in New Zealand or back home.

At the same time, going through a break-up with a lover that I did not see coming. It ended horribly and caused me to fixate on my shortcomings.

But you can’t lose sight of your goals.

I have to say that I lost sight the past month but I’m back with not-an-insurmountable list of goals to achieve.

I’m going to tell you my goals in hopes that my readers can keep me accountable. I crave accountability in hopes that next time I aspire to set even higher goals.

Setting goals, being accountable for those goals, and achieving what you set out to do are the foundations of a meaningful life. Jordan Peterson taught me that in his book, “12 Rules For Life”

Taking on responsibility for oneself before others is the cornerstone of what it means to live a meaningful life.

The only way is up from here. I can be a better person. I can fund my travels with an online business. I can take care of myself.

So without further ado, here’s my goals for the last quarter of 2018.

Maintain a 3-day a week workout schedule

I want to earn and maintain an irresistible physique. I had a strong 3-4 day a week gym routine at home before leaving for my trip and I was not able to maintain it very well while on the road. Although I did try. Travelling and a gym routine is one of the toughest obstacles that I have ever encountered. While in New Zealand for a 6 month job contract I committed to a 6 month membership during the span and I can say with confidence that I went 3 days a week for the entirety of the membership. From here on out I will not be staying in the same places for long so I have to figure out how I am going to achieve this. I will be using a fitness tracking app called FitNotes to keep record.

Blog post at least once a week (maybe more)

I would like to write more and develop this skill and by writing at least once a week. By writing, you are thinking and using your brain to create content instead of mindlessly consuming content made by others. I believe there is a big problem in our culture today of over-consumption. Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter can all be used to create but the masses prefer to use them to consume. They are powerful tools if used correctly or dangerously destructive when used incorrectly. By posting at least once a week, I am confident that I can grow into a better writer in a short amount of time and is a skill worth developing.

Make my first dollar online

It costs money to live today, that’s no secret. But after working in an office in New Zealand for 6 months, I was reminded that I will never be happy working the 9-5 for someone else. Online businesses are rife with opportunity waiting to be used to my advantage. I’ve just purchased the 6-figure side hustle course for $99 from Chris Johnson (@Nappyb0yy on Twitter) to help in achieving this goal. I was reluctant to purchase because $99 is very valuable to me right now but he wrote a tweet that convinced me to purchase. The tweet is below. I’ve never spent money on a course outside of University and for $99 I think the value is there, I just need to apply what I learn in the course and my ROI will be 10 times more valuable than my degree. I will begin selling travel products on https://shop.travellersatlas.com launching soon.

I know my information is worth way more than $99 but I want it accessible

I don’t think we’ve caught on to the idea of paying for infomation outside of the university system yet

I have a confession to make. I successfully kicked my nicotine addiction while working in New Zealand but now that I’m in Bali, where cigarettes are $2 a pack I’ve turned into a chimney but I’m making an active effort to slow my pace before I get to Australia. I’ve failed this goal in the past but I want to get back to a point where I am smoke-free again. This may be my most challenging goal, nicotine addition is no joke and should not be taken lightly. It’s compared to heroin in its addictive qualities and God knows I have had my struggle with cigarettes. I am considering nicotine patches to assist with quitting but will try cold-turkey at first. Alcohol is another story. I have had success in the past quitting drinking, only to return and get lost in it again repeatedly. Overt social pressure to drink is the biggest challenge to overcome when travelling but I have done so without too much strife. I plan to try this again. I don’t think I need to go into detail on why these two things are bad, it’s already known. This is an investment in myself and my own health.

Find Quality Women to Have Relationships With

This goal is more abstract but it’s more generally a personal goal of being a man worth having and the above goals are a good start. I took my recent break-up very hard and it led me to reevaluate what it is I bring to the relationship that is valuable and what isn’t along with reflecting on my mistakes. I have to say, she is an amazing woman overall, although we disagree on some required fundamental issues with regards to raising a family which I don’t believe would could get past. I also hope she evaluates herself too and thinks critically as I have. Both of our ugly sides came out during an argument post breakup so we both have something to learn about ourselves and improve. I hope she reflects on her actions as I have done but I won’t hold me breath, I never once heard an apology from her for choking me. As a man, it’s important to me that a woman be my co-captain and she should trust my leadership. Men and women are complimentary to each other one is neither better nor worse than the other but I believe the man is the leader of the family unit, and all the responsibilities that come with it, if someone can’t agree with that then it’s not going to work. Masculine and Feminine should not be in competition with one another as we see today and it’s disheartening to see family values eroding in our culture. Millions of years of traditional biological gender roles cannot be destroyed in tens of years. She was very independent and frankly, stubborn to a fault akin to a bratty child, and not always willing to compromise, concede, or be submissive as I believe a feminine woman should be. As if we were in competition with one another and not complementary to each other. She did not like to hear or entertain opinions with which she did not agree and was in general, not a person I would normally spend so much of my time around but I found her very attractive and looked past it. A lack of shared values and hobbies were probably a sign of things to come. It was meant to be a travel fling but I lusted over her which was great for a few passionate hookups but not for a serious relationship which I willingly urged (but not forced) her and I into. That was a mistake. When we first began hooking up I was the fun Alpha guy and once we got settled in, I became the boring Beta guy. It was predictably a woman’s hypergamy at it’s finest, but it’s just human nature so I’m not mad and have found my peace. She’s 26 and still on the hunt for an Alpha in her current state of hypergamy and when I became the comfortable Beta, she despised me for it, I wasn’t the same after getting into a relationship. I’ll admit, I got complacent by trying to save money, the excitement died, the sex got stale and rather boring (admittedly my fault) as our relationship went on and I think that is what killed the attraction in the relationship. I failed as an Alpha and as tough as that is to admit, I know I can improve myself next time when I’m ready for another serious relationship. We are now no-contact but I hope we can stay friends in the future. It’s not my place to tell anyone how to live their life, the only control I have is my life and I will be more cautious with whom I give my affection by vetting the women I date better.

Continue my German Language Lessons

I am currently on a 128 day streak in Duolingo and I don’t plan on giving that up. I started learning German because my ex girlfriend was German and I regularly meet Germans while travelling so I thought it would be a interesting language to learn. It’s a lot more difficult than I thought but I’m actually enjoying the challenge despite my relationship ending. Lessons only take about 10-15 minutes a day and I’ve come a long way since I started. This goal isn’t as important as the others but I felt it was a good thing to add so I am held accountable.

Get Better at Taking Pictures

I bought a rather entry-level mirrorless camera (Olympus EPL-5) that I would like to get the most out of. I would like to learn what it takes to get awesome travel shots that I can hang on my wall and keep for a lifetime. Photography is something anyone can do but rarely get good at. It takes practice and patience which I’m willing to put into it. Not exactly the loftiest goal because it’s hard to make money doing it but I’m more interested in exploring how the camera works and composing that perfect shot.

That’s it for now.

By sharing these goals I want to be held responsible for meeting them.

I will write a follow-up post at a later date to compare how I’ve done.

Nomad, Vagabond, Gallivanter, Globetrotter. A former wage slave to the corporate world of America and New Zealand, he now travels the world in search of exciting experiences and good company. Nick Grant is the sole founder and Editor-in-Chief of Traveller's Atlas. You find him on Twitter and Instagram @thatnickgrant